So, this is what is going on with me (and then I would very much like to hear what is going on with you)!
Today is Thursday, March 12th. I have just finished my four classes and in forty-five minutes I will be watching a three-hour long film in Spanish. This is not particularly being done by choice, rather it is a requirement for my Spanish Literature class. Thankfully there are subtitles (in English - I really lucked out). This week I had two tests: History of the Three Cultures of Spain (Judaism, Christianity, & Islam), and Spanish Short Stories. I think I did fairly well on them... somewhere in the "B" range. My goal is to always move up on a test and therefore I would like either a "B+" or an "A-".
Tomorrow is Friday and my last day of classes for the week (like normal). Nothing too exciting planned - lots of homework to get done. I have to read Isabel Allende's "La casa de los espiritus" (House of Spirits) in Spanish. Those 525 pages are killing me because I need to have it read, comprehended, and a nice 10+ page paper written by April 1st. I also have other, regular, daily homework. Some advice I would like to give to all other students coming here: do NOT take three literature classes! The amount of reading in a foreign language that you will be required to accomplish is a little steep, particularly when you consider that you are in a gorgeous country!
On Saturday I will be traveling to Granada to visit the Alhambra Palace. I am absolutely overjoyed about this! This is a place I have studied since high school and castles/palaces (if you can tell me the difference between the two I will send you a postcard!) have always fascinated me. So I am very much looking forward to seeing this place in person! I am not entirely certain how we are traveling there or when we are arriving or what time we are returning. But hey - I'm being spontaneous!
Sunday is my day to sleep a bit (attending church occurs on Wednesdays now) and continue reading my huge tome of a book. Then at five o'clock I will be attending a Real Betis soccer game here in Sevilla! This is a much loved team and I don't think they win as often as Sevilla's other team does. Therefore I am going to imagine attending this game as being somewhat similar to going to a Cub's game. There's still hope!!
Once my busy weekend is over I have two tests that look like they are going to be a bit rough. And then I only have nine weeks left here! I cannot believe how fast time has flown! On one hand it feels like I've been here for a long time - so much has happened at home and I do feel like life is slowly passing me by. But that is just because most of you have been more than fabulous in keeping me informed of your life and so I am excited to hear what new and exciting things you are doing, though I do feel that all I do here is study and that makes the time drag by more slowly. However, I am certain that once my book and subsequent paper is complete I will have time to travel and just generally enjoy myself, without that weight hanging over my head.
And still on the other hand, I am startled to realize that I only have nine weeks left here. I so want to become fluent and I am still not at a level that pleases me. Yes, I do see improvement but I think that I have always subconsciously expected to become native-like while I studied here. That hope is a dillusion and complete fallacy. However, if I can continue to improve at the rate I am going I will be okay with the time I spent here. My ease of speaking has been improved and I am generally more comfortable. Perhaps I will never be as fully fluent as I would hope, but I do have the rest of my life to absorb this language.
Some praises I would like to share!
- My tests have gone well! The tests here are more difficult than those at home and I am grateful that I am not flunking - not even getting a "C"!
- I have had and had opportunities to travel! I loved visiting Lisbon and Cordoba and most recently Toledo. I am so excited and blessed to be able to go to Granada this weekend! I didn't plan it, someone asked me to go and I am so blessed and grateful!
- The girls here: Hayla, Dawn, Erin, Chrissa, and others. These are the girls that have made me feel more at home and comfortable here. They are truly blessings from God and I am excited to get to know them better.
- Sleep - I have been able to sleep! I can sleep through the night now and I am getting enough sleep to stay awake in classes! :)
- Being here. I've been looking through my journal that I have kept since 2001 and coming to Europe and studying in Spain has always been a desire of mine. I am so thankful to finally be here. I was reading in Oswald Chambers "My Utmost for His Highest" that we cannot attain the vision, but rather that we must live each day in anticipation of it. One of my visions, or rather visions the Lord has given me, has been attained but I am reminded not to just stop there. God didn't want me to merely show up and set foot in Spain. I firmly believe He has plans for me here and I am excited to live each day in anticipation of what is in store!
- I am extremely nervous about my housing arrangmentes for next year. I desperately desire to live in the townhouses again (though lodges or apartments would suit me as well). It has been a sheer delight to have a kitchen of my own and I will be greatly disappointed to have to return to the confines of a dorm. I need to find a group of girls to live with and this needs to happen soon - as in the next month. Please pray that God would first of all adjust my attitude so that I can see joy in either circumstance and that He will provide another perfect roommate for me.
- A job... I am not at all certain how I am going to earn money this summer to live on and to finance schooling. As we all know the economy isn't the best and it is harder than ever for high school and college students to find a job. Every day when I log onto the internet I read about more businesses closing and more about the long-lasting effects of the recession - this is scary because I have no idea what is in store for me when I return home. Please pray that God would provide for my needs (and maybe a few of my wants, specifically visiting friends this summer who have graduated and I won't see again for a long time).
- The book I have to read. It is big, it is long, it is hard. Please pray that I finish it well, on time (I am such a procrastinator), and honor God with the finished product.
Once again, I try to comment. It hasn't been letting me, so I tried a slightly different strategy. OK, I pray for you to read book. And I pray for you and me both to find roommates, since I'll be back on campus, too. Do you still get all of the housing emails and stuff? And how are you registering for classes in the fall way over there in Spain?
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